Niacin biological challenge: A paradigm to evaluate social concerns

Anxiety sensitivity (AS) social concerns, the fear of observable anxiety symptoms is posited as a risk factor for social anxiety by increasing fear reactivity in social situations when observable anxiety symptoms are present. Experimental evaluation of AS social concerns is limited. The current study utilized several manipulations designed to be relevant to AS social concerns or fear of negative evaluation (FNE), a distinct social anxiety risk factor. The effects of these manipulations on fear reactivity to a speech were examined.

Participants (N = 124 students; M age = 19.44, SD = 2.45; 64.5% female) were randomized to one of four conditions in a 2 (100 mg niacin vs 100 mg sugar pill) X 2 (instructional set) design. For the instructional set manipulation, participants were told their speech performance would be evaluated by a judge based on their performance (i.e., FNE-relevant) or their observable anxiety symptoms (i.e., AS social concerns-relevant).

There was a main effect for vitamin condition with participants in the niacin condition reporting higher panic symptoms post-speech relative to those in the placebo condition. There was no main effect for speech instructions. As hypothesized, these effects were qualified by an interaction indicating that AS social concerns significantly predicted panic symptoms for those receiving niacin.

Limitations include the reliance on self-reports of outcome variables and the use of an undergraduate student sample.

These findings highlight a distinct role of AS social concerns in fear responding to socially evaluative situations in the context of physically observable arousal.